Western KY culture (Owensboro, Bowling Green, Hopkinsville: real estate, apartment, crime)

[drinkthekoolaid]

I really don't know much about western KY but I'm starting to get more interested in it. How does compare to the rest of the state?
It seems the real estate you might get more for your money.
What about the people and culture? Is it more southern, Midwest or Appalachian? How does it compare to the rest of the state for drugs, crime and poverty?

I'm really becoming intrigued about getting 5+ acres and having a mini homestead. The climate seems pretty mild and good for agriculture. There seems to be a lot of good size lots on real estate. I'm really looking for a slice to traditional slower paced Americana. I'm really getting burned out with the corporate grind living in the suburbs and stuck in this feedback loop. I want more control over my life and what I own and more control over my food supply.

Are the people friendly and welcoming of new comers or is it hard to break in and make friends and connections?

Any advice or things to consider and research would be very appreciated. Thanks guys.

[NW Crow]

The mix of southern, Midwest and Appalachian sort of varies by exact location (including place size), person to person and what you notice; but southern is a good basic / main description.

For place suggestions, it helps to hear size of town you want to be near and how near.

How serious folks are about growing a non-small amount of own food is hard to gauge, to readers and probably to the potential grower. Relatively few who consider it, follow thru on more than a 1/2 acre or for more than 1 year or a few. Every type of food has things to learn to grow it / yield it and not everything can be grown easily. Got to can a lot of stuff and store proper. Animal husbandry for things bigger than a chicken. Time required from start to finish can be underestimated and how much semi-independence is worth might be a vague concept. Is it worth 500 hours per year? 1,000 or more? Is that going to come out of work time or leisure time? Do what you think you want, but be prepared and realistic about what you can and will do. Total or near total independence is one level / goal, 10-25+% is more common, especially early. Don't know how important this element is to you,m; but if is important, how much experience do you already have?

[Nu2Lou]

Western KY receives much less attention and publicity than other parts of the state, despite its incredible assets. Even state-at-large travel magazines and brochures tend to highlight other regions of KY that may be perceived as more scenic and/or interesting, while overlooking Western KY (sans Owensboro).

Although Western KY is not nearly as wealthy as the Bluegrass Region, it is also nowhere near as destitute as Eastern KY. In Western KY, there are many beautiful, well-kept farms and residential priorities and relatively few messy, rundown trailers (at least, in my observations).

Bowling Green, Owensboro, Murray, Paducah, Hopkinsville, etc. now exist within the orbit of Nashville, whose tentacles have spread far and wide over the past decade. Arguably, those towns have gained some of the energy and momentum exuded by Nashville. Combined with productive agricultural and manufacturing operations in the region, the overall vibe in Western KY seems more positive than the Ohio River Valley and Eastern KY.

I suppose it helps that Western KY is a bit sunnier and warmer than the rest of the state, too.

[drinkthekoolaid]

Originally Posted by Nu2Lou

Western KY receives much less attention and publicity than other parts of the state, despite its incredible assets. Even state-at-large travel magazines and brochures tend to highlight other regions of KY that may be perceived as more scenic and/or interesting, while overlooking Western KY (sans Owensboro).

Although Western KY is not nearly as wealthy as the Bluegrass Region, it is also nowhere near as destitute as Eastern KY. In Western KY, there are many beautiful, well-kept farms and residential priorities and relatively few messy, rundown trailers (at least, in my observations).

Bowling Green, Owensboro, Murray, Paducah, Hopkinsville, etc. now exist within the orbit of Nashville, whose tentacles have spread far and wide over the past decade. Arguably, those towns have gained some of the energy and momentum exuded by Nashville. Combined with productive agricultural and manufacturing operations in the region, the overall vibe in Western KY seems more positive than the Ohio River Valley and Eastern KY.

I suppose it helps that Western KY is a bit sunnier and warmer than the rest of the state, too.

Great feedback thank you.

Would you say it's "less crime, less drugs, less poverty" than some of the other areas of the state?

[drinkthekoolaid]

Originally Posted by NW Crow

The mix of southern, Midwest and Appalachian sort of varies by exact location (including place size), person to person and what you notice; but southern is a good basic / main description.

For place suggestions, it helps to hear size of town you want to be near and how near.

How serious folks are about growing a non-small amount of own food is hard to gauge, to readers and probably to the potential grower. Relatively few who consider it, follow thru on more than a 1/2 acre or for more than 1 year or a few. Every type of food has things to learn to grow it / yield it and not everything can be grown easily. Got to can a lot of stuff and store proper. Animal husbandry for things bigger than a chicken. Time required from start to finish can be underestimated and how much semi-independence is worth might be a vague concept. Is it worth 500 hours per year? 1,000 or more? Is that going to come out of work time or leisure time? Do what you think you want, but be prepared and realistic about what you can and will do. Total or near total independence is one level / goal, 10-25+% is more common, especially early. Don't know how important this element is to you,m; but if is important, how much experience do you already have?

I'm envisioning starting off growing like 10% of my food.

Maybe a 25x25 garden, a small fruit orchard, grapes, and chickens etc. nothing crazy but need to start somewhere.

It seems this area has a lot of relatively usable and affordable agriculture land that would fit what I'm looking for.

[kygman]

If you could afford land along one of the lakes, you could try what my wife's uncle did. He had a huge garden and got a permit from the Corps of Engineers to run a line from the lake to a pump and water his garden that way. Besides what they canned and froze, he sold a lot of his produce to the state parks and some stores.
I've lived in western Kentucky all my life (so far! lol) and have, for the most part, realized how friendly people are. But, no matter where you live, you're going to have a few soreheads. We had friends buy a house in Canton, on the edge of Lake Barkley in Trigg County. They had barely shut the U-Haul down to unload when two different neighbors came over with food and to offer a hand.

[drinkthekoolaid]

Originally Posted by kygman

If you could afford land along one of the lakes, you could try what my wife's uncle did. He had a huge garden and got a permit from the Corps of Engineers to run a line from the lake to a pump and water his garden that way. Besides what they canned and froze, he sold a lot of his produce to the state parks and some stores.
I've lived in western Kentucky all my life (so far! lol) and have, for the most part, realized how friendly people are. But, no matter where you live, you're going to have a few soreheads. We had friends buy a house in Canton, on the edge of Lake Barkley in Trigg County. They had barely shut the U-Haul down to unload when two different neighbors came over with food and to offer a hand.

That's pretty awesome. Sounds like exactly the neighbors I would be thrilled to have.

I'm finding totally livable, nice places meeting most of my wants for sub 200k and very cheap taxes.

Here's 1 such example

https://www.zillow.com/homedetails/2...22835075_zpid/


This is really making me think long and hard that perhaps need to schedule a trip this summer to check the area out and get eyes on it and get an in person feel for what it's like. You can only learn so much from Google earth and street view.


Any more advice or info to share? Are there any areas or counties to avoid either for school reasons or crime reasons? How are the public schools?

[kygman]

The thing about the house you posted, Cunningham is out in the middle of nowhere. And, on the price, almost 4 years ago my stepdaughter and son in law sold their 3 BR, 2 bath home, with a small apartment in the basement, with 14 acres, for around $190,000. And it wasn't on the market for very long. Son in law sold some of the timber on their land and paid off a bunch of bills. This was about 10 miles south of Cadiz.
Transportation through this area to anywhere is great. I-24 takes you to Nashville and on to I-75 in Chattanooga, taking you to Atlanta and beyond. In the other direction, 24 takes you to I-64 which takes you to St. Louis. A few parts of I-69 still haven't been finished yet, but when done, west Ky. will be on the main route from the Gulf around Galveston, Texas to Detroit.
Can't tell you very much about the schools. My youngest graduated 20+ years ago. I can tell you my granddaughter is in her senior year and, at the same time she receives her high school diploma, she'll also be receiving her associate degree from the Murray State University Community College in Madisonville where they live. Athletics is big around here, especially football. My high school's football team, the Mayfield Cardinals, won the last two Class AA state championships.
If you're going to come down for a few days to check things out, I think I'd try staying around Kentucky Dam Village State Park. That way, no matter which way you want to go looking at, you'll be more centrally located here.

[drinkthekoolaid]

So is it safe to say that western KY has more of a middle America rural culture than it feels like Appalachia?

I still never got a really clear answer on the meth, drugs, crime situation how doe sit compare to the rest of the state?

[NW Crow]

Western KY is a defined region but with diversity. Ohio River port cities with some industry, TN border towns, college towns, lake towns, farming towns, religious enclaves. Check out some YouTube videos, drive around Google maps streetwise, read the newspapers. Visit like a possible future resident rather than a simple tourist. Know your questions and aggressively pursue answers, talking to lots of locals.

Maybe further define what kind of spot in Western KY appeals to you to be near. I dunno if anyone wants to try to answer about all of them or any of them without knowing you are interested in particular places.

Crime stats, check city-data.com pages for places or other sites. Maybe somebody will talk about meth issue, but maybe not. The scale for what is "bad" or "unacceptable" will vary by person commenting, real knowledge and specific locations. Some people call
or visit police departments and try to find someone willing to engage in a 3-5 minute chat.